/archive

name: OpenSpec: Archive
description: Archive a deployed OpenSpec change and update specs.
category: OpenSpec
tags: [openspec, archive]

<!-- OPENSPEC:START --> **Guardrails**

• Favor straightforward, minimal implementations first and add complexity only when it is requested or clearly required.
• Keep changes tightly scoped to the requested outcome.
• Refer to `openspec/AGENTS.md` (located inside the `openspec/` directory—run `ls openspec` or `openspec update` if you don't see it) if you need additional OpenSpec conventions or clarifications.

**Steps** 1. Determine the change ID to archive:

• If this prompt already includes a specific change ID (for example inside a `<ChangeId>` block populated by slash-command arguments), use that value after trimming whitespace.
• If the conversation references a change loosely (for example by title or summary), run `openspec list` to surface likely IDs, share the relevant candidates, and confirm which one the user intends.
• Otherwise, review the conversation, run `openspec list`, and ask the user which change to archive; wait for a confirmed change ID before proceeding.
• If you still cannot identify a single change ID, stop and tell the user you cannot archive anything yet.

2. Validate the change ID by running `openspec list` (or `openspec show <id>`) and stop if the change is missing, already archived, or otherwise not ready to archive. 3. Run `openspec archive <id> --yes` so the CLI moves the change and applies spec updates without prompts (use `--skip-specs` only for tooling-only work). 4. Review the command output to confirm the target specs were updated and the change landed in `changes/archive/`. 5. Validate with `openspec validate --strict` and inspect with `openspec show <id>` if anything looks off.

**Reference**

• Use `openspec list` to confirm change IDs before archiving.
• Inspect refreshed specs with `openspec list --specs` and address any validation issues before handing off.

<!-- OPENSPEC:END -->